A lot of baseball players see getting released from an affiliated organization as a death sentence to their careers.
Some people see getting diagnosed with a debilitating disease as a death sentence to an enjoyable life.
Thankfully for Tyler Jay, he is not like most players or people.
Jay was a highly sought after talent when he was drafted as the sixth overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins.
After signing, Jay was sent to High A Fort Myers as a relief pitcher, but was transitioned to a starter for the next season.
In 2016, he compiled a 5-5 record with a 2.84 ERA as a starter in 13 games with Fort Myers before being promoted to Double A Chattanooga. He finished out the season with a 5.79 ERA in 5 games (2 starts).
However, the transition to starting and the jump in playing level never panned out quite like the Twins or Jay would have hoped. His mechanics had changed from what made him so success at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
His 2017 regular season was cut short due to injury. In 8 games (1 start) across 3 levels, he pitched in only 11.2 innings with a 3.09 ERA.
The Twins sent Jay to the Arizona Fall League in 2017, but this time he was coming out of the bullpen to log some innings.
His 2018 season was spent back with Chattanooga in relief, posting a 4-5 record and 4.22 ERA with 38 appearances including 2 starts.
During the 2019 season, his performance started to decline due in large part to medical issues that were still undiagnosed. He began losing weight while struggling to swallow properly. His strength and energy were depleated and his pitching was faltering.
Jay was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in June of 2019. He spent the majority of his time with the Reds at their Double A affiliate in Pensacola recording a 1-2 record and 4.82 ERA in 17 relief appearances.
He was later released by the Reds during the pandemic canceled minor league season.
Jay spent the 2021 season out of baseball while he focused on his family and health. He was diagnosed with eosinophilic esophagitis (EOE), an allergic condition that inflames the esophagus. This explained the difficulty in swallowing accompanied by his continuing digestive issues and weight loss.
Even with two years away from the sport and a major health diagnosis, he never stopped training and preparing. After spending time building back up his strength, Jay was ready for another opportunity in baseball.
But by then, he wasn’t sure if a lot of travel with an affiliated organization would be the right fit for him and his body.
Insert independent baseball and a fresh start with a team close to his home, the Joliet Slammers of the Frontier League.
Jay asked for a tryout and signed to pitch for the Slammers in 2022.
When he joined Joliet, Jay had assumed he would be there as a veteran presence who helped the younger players on their own quest to make it to the major leagues. But with the help of Slammers manager Daniel Schlereth, he was able to simplfy his mechanics back to what made him so successful in the past. He started hitting mid-90s on the radar gun, and scouts were taking notice again.
He compiled a 2-1 record with a 1.64 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 22 appearaces with the Slammers that season.
Back with the Slammers in 2023, Jay continued pitching well and lighting up the radar gun. The hard throwing southpaw once again started turning the heads of scouts. By the end of August, he had racked up 64 strikeouts in 20 appearances over 57 innings.
Tyler Jay’s second chance at his big league dreams came when the New York Mets took a chance and purchased his contract from the Joliet Slammers on August 24th, 2023.
After signing, he was sent to AAA Syracuse to finish out his summer making six apperances with the team.
Jay had a memorable spring training outing, striking out seven batters in five shutout innings, but ultimately ended up starting the season back in Syracuse.
However this week, the stars aligned. The rainouts and extra-innings took a toll on the big league bullpen, and the Mets were in desperate need of a pitcher.
On April 11th, 2024, just 8 days shy of his 30th birthday, Tyler Jay made his major league debut with the New York Mets. He pitched two innings, allowing one earned run on five hits while striking out one batter and walking one.
When asked if he thought that moment would never happen, Jay replied that since he was released in 2019 he thought about it, “maybe about every day… Every night you go to bed, you’re thinking like ‘man is it… like is this worth it.’ And then every day you just get up and just continue to grind.”
Indy Ball Island 